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July 17, 2012 4:53 PM
With Friends Like These….
I know this blog has been Mitt-heavy today, but I just can’t resist this bit of friendly fire aimed at the GOP nominee, by his predecessor, as reported by Politico’s Manu Raju:
Mitt Romney’s tax returns had nothing to do with Sen. John McCain’s decision to choose Sarah Palin as his running mate in 2008, according to the Arizona Republican, saying he chose the former Alaska governor because she was a “better candidate.”
McCain received more than two decades worth of Romney’s tax returns as the former Massachusetts governor was undergoing the vetting process four years ago, far more than Romney has released publicly in the 2012 campaign. Democrats have questioned whether McCain saw something untoward in those tax returns and decided to choose Palin instead.
But on Tuesday, McCain flatly rejected that assertion and grew angry at questions over his decision to choose Palin over Romney….
Asked why he chose not to go with Romney, McCain said: “Oh come on, because we thought that Sarah Palin was the better candidate. Why did we not take [Tim] Pawlenty, why did we not take any of the other 10 other people. Why didn’t I? Because we had a better candidate, the same way with all the others. … Come on, why? That’s a stupid question.”
And a stupid answer to match.
At least McCain didn’t name every one of Mitt’s potential running mates as among the “10 other people” deemed inferior to Sarah Palin.
In a slightly less egregious example of questionable witnesses for the defense, McCain’s 2008 campaign manager, Steve Schmidt, has denied that Romney was tossed off the Veep list because of his tax returns (which Schmidt personally did not see), while confirming it was because of Mitt’s wealth.
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c u n d gulag on July 17, 2012 5:05 PM:
Talk about a damning statement!
'I chose the scatter-brained, illiterate Alaskan hillbilly with a pregnant teenage daughter, instead of this very rich man - because SHE was a better candidate.
The ad's write themselves!
T2 on July 17, 2012 5:15 PM:
this simply illustrates the low regard Romney is held in by the GOP hierarchy. A half-term governor of a tiny state (population-wise) without any national recognition was deemed a better candidate than Mitt, who had been gov of a big state (pop. wise) and has solid name recognition due to his father. Yet McCain took Palin after meeting her, what, once? And with very little personal knowledge of her (unfortunate for him, it turns out). Still that was "better" than taking Mitt.
One thing we can all agree on - Republicans don't make very good decisions.
RT on July 17, 2012 5:20 PM:
Not only did McCain diss Romney, he tacitly admitted his own stupidity as well.
jjm on July 17, 2012 5:24 PM:
Who does like Mitt? Anyone? Pray tell.
tcinaz on July 17, 2012 5:25 PM:
This is "Bomb, bomb, bomb Iran..." John McCain we're talking about here. He also said, " "The issue of economics is not something I've understood as well as I should." On how many houses, "I think -- I'll have my staff get to you." Now it's, “Oh come on, because we thought that Sarah Palin was the better candidate." All this begs the question what is in those returns.
Diane Rodriguez on July 17, 2012 5:28 PM:
What a dilemma. Acknowledging that you were smoking crack when you picked some trailer trash for VP or maintaining that your judgement was stellar in choosing a sleezy reality show corporation as VP.
zandru on July 17, 2012 5:55 PM:
McCain got 20 years of Romney's Tax Returns?!?
Does he still have them? What about his 2008 campaign staff? Did anyone keep copies? Was there any correspondence (email or otherwise) discussing the Romney returns?
There may be a gold mine out there. Has anyone started looking yet?!?
Daniel on July 17, 2012 7:03 PM:
McCain was absolutely right. Palin may have been a vulgar idiot, but she at least energized the campaign and finally made McCain exciting. McCain/Romney would have seemed incredibly dull and out of touch.
N.Wells on July 17, 2012 7:15 PM:
Wow, do the ads ever write themselves: Romney - even worse than Palin, says John McCain.
(Yes, CUNDG got there first....)
Was McCain's answer a) lack of thinking, b) his notorious ill temper getting the better of him, or c) he really really really doesn't like Romney? Maybe he's just envious that Romney can remember how many homes he's got.
Do you think that McCain will swing around for a victory pass after this one?
H-Bob on July 17, 2012 7:17 PM:
My theory is that McCain chose Palin because she is shorter than him. McCain didn't want to spend his moment in the sun being literally overshadowed by Mittster !
cwolf on July 17, 2012 9:15 PM:
I thought McLame picked the half-termer because she could see Russia from her porch.
T-Rex on July 17, 2012 9:34 PM:
cwolf: More likely the view from when he was standing behind her on the podium.
Daniel on July 17, 2012 10:25 PM:
He certainly could have give a more polite answer.... Something along the lines of "he just wasn't the right statesman for the campaign we wanted to run at the time." That wouldn't have even been wrong.
TG Chicago on July 18, 2012 5:04 PM:
Two thoughts:
1) Given the McCain campaign's slipshod vetting of Palin, I have no faith that they truly pored into those Romney tax returns to see what's there.
2) Question for Romney: "Why is it that you were willing to give McCain 20 years of tax returns in an effort to become Vice President, but you won't give those returns to the American people in your effort to become President?"